iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

❗ Patch update: International servers are now available “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is now available worldwide from bookshop.org and other major online retailers 📚 #booksky #anthology

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

We couldn’t be more honoured to be included in this annual list of outstanding new international releases in children's and youth books 💖 “To the Last Gram” is available at differenceengine.sg (selected regions), bookshop.org, or other major online retailers.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 25/09/2026

We’re thrilled to watch “To the Last Gram” spread its wings and make it across the globe, landing in the 2026 White Ravens list 🕊️ Congratulations to creators Shreya Davies and Vanessa Wong ❤️‍🔥

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 25/08/2026

Like a scrapbook that brings together beautifully mismatched pieces, even your messiest feelings and memories have a meaningful place in your story. “How Are You Feeling? A Comics Anthology” is now available worldwide on bookshop.org and major online retailers. #booksky #mentalhealth

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 24/08/2026

No RNG, no min-maxxing, just feelings 🎮✨ If you need a break from the endless scroll, grab a copy and see where your core memories take you. 🕹️ “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is available for preorder worldwide at major online bookstores (link in bio) #booksky #videogames

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

The September heat won’t be stopping us from visiting our SEA neighbours!✈️ We’re swinging by Manila International Book Fair to talk about all things comics💬 and then bringing our books to you at Indonesia International Book Fair at Booth 15! #bookfair #publishing

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

And we’re back with a sim…sala…bim! 🪄 Here's part 2 of us taking a closer look at the iconic power magical girls bring through magic spells, outfit transformations, and embracing the cute and feminine as comfort and resistance 💫 Read the full blog post at differenceengine.sg/unpacking-th...

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

Lock in, chat. Here’s what the message boards have to say about “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology”. The verdict — touching grass is great, but sometimes the best stories come from logging on and choosing your own adventure 🎮 🕹️ Available for preorder worldwide (link in bio) #booksky #anthology

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

Aligning satellites and fixing radio frequencies 🛰️ … Dial into our panels at @laworldcon.bsky.social from anywhere in the world and sync up with our creators for a whirlwind of science and speculative fiction! 🎟️ Tickets at www.lacon.org (link in bio) #LAWorldcon #worldcon2026

🚀 What Rages Beneath: SFF From Singapore
7:30PM, 30 Aug (PDT)
10:30AM, 31 Aug (SGT)
Virtual (online)

🚀 Avatars, Quests and Extra Lives
12:00AM, 30 Aug (PDT)
3:00PM, 30 Aug (SGT)
Virtual (online)

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

Book lover Aqilah (@aqilahreads on IG) might just be the IRL magical girl that everyone needs, and her incandescent whimsy is an affirmation of how growing up doesn't mean that we’ve outgrown the magic of middle-grade comics ✨ Watch the reel on IG (link in bio)

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

Can pink be a clarion call and whimsy an underrated power? If you've ever had the sneaking suspicion that there was more to your childhood obsessions than what *the adults* said about it, we're here to restore that collective magic. Look out for "Magical Sweet Gula" releasing worldwide Sep 2026 💖

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 18/07/2026

You’re not seeing double 🔥🔥 Women everywhere have always been marked by history, and we’re taking our fiercest fight to the rest of the world. Read “Tiger Girls” by Felicia Low-Jimenez and Claire Low in English and Danish, now available worldwide through @maverickogn.bsky.social and Bogoo.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 14/07/2026

Ken Liu @kyliu99.bsky.social unpacks the unique video game lanugage that plays around with perspective and what players see or don’t see. 🕹️ “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is available for preorder worldwide: bookshop.org/p/books/free... #booksky #writersky

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 24/06/2026

Add a little ✨Southeast Asia✨ to your kid’s reading list with the “Amazing Ash & Superhero Ah Ma” series, and “Marvellous Mammals: A Wild A to Z of Southeast Asia”! These books are now available worldwide from bookshop.org and other major online retailers 📚 #booksky #kidlit

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

Divya’s story finds a way to say “you’re not alone” and that sometimes having difficult and honest conversations together is how we rip off the bandaid for something new to begin.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

Too big. Too small. Wanting to feel special. Never feeling like you’re enough. “To the Last Gram” is now available worldwide 🧵 English edition: bookshop.org, amazon, or other major online retailers French edition: editionsduricochet.com #graphicnovel #booksky

Now available worldwide, cover of "To the Last Gram", in English and French.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

🎪Find our booths: Difference Engine: Table 216 Shreya Davies: Table 285 ✨Check out our panels!

Publisher Pitch Roulette
Fri, 5 Jun
1pm – 1.50pm

Publishing for the Revolution
Sun, 7 June
2.45pm – 3.35pm

Being Human is Hard: Mental Health in YA Comics
Friday, 5 June
10am – 10:50 am

A Drop of Colour on a White Page: Being “The Other” in Comics
Sat, 6 June
4:30pm – 5:30pm

Exploring Graphic Medicine
Sun, 7 June
2:45pm – 3:35 pm

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

SEE YOU AT TCAF, EH? 🇨🇦 Toronto Comic Arts Festival @torontocomics.bsky.social, here we come! 🍁 We’re so stoked for our first trip to Canada and are also super excited for our creator Shreya Davies to have her first-ever solo creator booth and beaver tail on the same trip 💖 #TCAF #TCAF2026

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

YOUR INVENTORY IS FILLING UP AGAIN Written by Wen-yi Lee @wenyilee.bsky.social A relationship captured in texts, polaroids, plastic bottles: an overburdened inventory that is also how full our hearts are ❤️‍🔥 🕹️ “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is available for preorder worldwide (link in bio)

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 27/05/2026

FAST TRAVEL by Adriana X. Jacobs @axjacobs.bsky.social The flame renews you and you’re back in your armour fighting for your life. You die. You reset. What is this feeling that you’ve felt before? ✨ “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is available for preorder worldwide (link in bio).

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 27/05/2026

SHADOW STONE by Erica Eng Go back to the feeling of being a young gamer exploring new worlds with people you’ve never met before. You might not win, but maybe you’ll find a new friend along the way. ✨ “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is available for preorder worldwide (link in bio).

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 27/05/2026

See all the pixels of “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” gathered into print, wrapped in @d.daddystar’s (IG) otherwordly landscape inspired by oracles, orcs, open worlds, and everything in between. 🕹️ “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is available for preorder worldwide (link in bio)

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 18/05/2026

snake on a train Written by Judith Huang Judith Huang’s visual poem captures the enduring tragedy of Snake, chasing down blips to feed a never-ending hunger. 🕹️ “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is available for preorder worldwide (link in bio) #poetry #writingcommunity

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 18/05/2026

IT'S DANGEROUS TO GO ALONE Written & illustrated by Anthony Falleroni Your backseat gamer is naggy, but as the game gets tougher, you realise that maybe they're also an encouragement 💕 🕹️ “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is available for preorder worldwide (link in bio) #comics #videogames

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 16/05/2026

THE WRITER AS GAMER Written by Alvin Pang Using the choose-your-own-adventure format as an analogue to life, Alvin Pang reflects on a creative life logged in game hours. 🕹️ “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is available for preorder worldwide (link in bio)

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 16/05/2026

We’re bringing Southeast Asian comics to the city of Chicago! 🏙️ 📚 ALA 2026 Annual Conference & Exhibition 25 – 29 June 2026 Find out books at: Publisher Spotlight (Booth 3631) & Consortium (Booth 3431) 📚 Children’s Institue 2026 26 – 29 June 2026 #ALAAC26 #publishing

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 11/05/2026

BOYS AND GIRLS ACROSS DEAD WORLDS by Alex K. Masse Alex K. Masse revisits their past selves in the form of MMO game avatars and online spaces that have reckoned with, rejected, or embraced their queerness. ✨ “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is available for preorder worldwide (link in bio)

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 11/05/2026

DON'T START WITHOUT ME by Kenneth Lam The low dim of a LAN shop. An online game interrupted by a phone call on dial-up. These poems are of a coming-of-age found in video games, their rituals and intimacies. ✨ “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is available for preorder worldwide (link in bio)

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 11/05/2026

GOD OF WAR by Maya Escobar Kratos, God of War, blusters with toxic masculinity. But with Maya’s humorous observations, maybe under all that ⚡️Big God Energy⚡️is just a flawed man learning to be a father. ✨ “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is available for preorder worldwide (link in bio).

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 11/05/2026

A SEAT AT VENBA'S TABLE by Varsha Sivaram Food can bring people together… or poke at the seams. Varsha Sivaram reflects on the short narrative cooking game Venba from their parents’ eyes — and hands. ✨ “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is available for preorder worldwide (link in bio).

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 11/05/2026

memory leak by Zhen A new memory scanner lets you share your childhood with your friend. Back then, games were an escape if you just ignored the disapproval and insults. What if you pressed play again? ✨ “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is available for preorder worldwide (link in bio).

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 05/05/2026

DAWN OF CLARANDERA Written by Meihan Boey 🕹️Preorder “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” Selected regions: differenceengine.sg/comics/free-... Rest of the world: bookshop.org/p/books/free... #booksky #fantasy

DAWN OF CLARANDERA
Written by Meihan Boey
But some thugs attacked the Scarlet Curtain and the mage died heroically defending me. However, he never broke the spell, and I am still a bunny.
If you pay $29.99 for the full package for me, you get access to my questline, should you choose to accept it. Gamers often underestimate my quest – after all, itʼs a quest to undo the bunny spell for the cutesy whore in the Scarlet Curtain. How hard could it be?

Meihan Boey is the Singaporean author of the Miss Cassidy trilogy, which includes The Formidable Miss Cassidy, The Enigmatic Madam Ingram, and The Mystical Mister Kay. The series collectively has been awarded the Epigram Books Fiction Prize (2021 & 2025) and Best Literary Work (2021), and has been nominated for the Singapore Book Awards, Popular Readers' Choice Award, and Dublin Literary Awards.
The series is being published in the UK by Pushkin Books, and in the US by Harper Perennial. It has also been translated into Italian and Albanian.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 05/05/2026

HE IS YOU, SHE'S FOR YOU Created by Hana Yaacob @hanayaacob.bsky.social 🕹️Preorder “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” Selected regions: differenceengine.sg/comics/free-... Rest of the world: bookshop.org/p/books/free... #comics #graphicnovel

Hana Yaacob is a Malay-Puerto Rican writer and illustrator from Singapore. She’s participated in several charity and Kickstarter-funded comic anthologies, numerous zines, and has her own webcomic. When she’s not drawing elaborate costumes and messy characters with difficult moral decisions, she can be found studying languages, going for long walks, and playing with her cat.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 05/05/2026

PRESS 'Y' TO REBOOT Written by Noor Tannir 🕹️Preorder “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” Selected regions: differenceengine.sg/comics/free-... Rest of the world: bookshop.org/p/books/free... #publishing #prose

Press “Y” to Reboot by Noor Tannir
To play shooter games is to die, to kill. To play is to participate in death, even in grief. In the game mode I play most, Reload Zero Build, the rifts keep you away from final elimination. In Fortniteʼs traditional mode, Battle Royale, once a teammate is killed they are replaced with a card that waits for pickup.

Noor Tannir is a Lebanese writer, curator, and cultural practitioner currently based in New York. She previously worked as a Junior Curator for independent art initiative Barjeel Art Foundation in Sharjah, UAE, and has received her MFA in Creative Nonfiction from Sarah Lawrence College in 2026. Her manuscript was longlisted for the Azhar Writing Prize 2025, and received an honourable mention in Nightboat Books' 2025 Prose Reading Period.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

ALL THE SKIN(S) YOU LEFT BEHIND Created by Sarah Mak @sarahmak.bsky.social and Nic Chan @nicmakesstuff.bsky.social 🕹️Preorder “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” Selected regions: differenceengine.sg/comics/free-... Rest of the world: bookshop.org/p/books/free... #indiegame #booksky

ALL THE SKIN(S) YOU LEFT BEHIND by Sarah Mak and Nic Chan
“The Mystic Legends servers have permanently closed. Thank you for playing!”
Now the game is definitely dead, for good. You knew that already, but you just wanted to be sure. You still wanted to pinch yourself to remember that youʼre living in the real world, where pain lasts and matters.
You canʼt live in your childhood memories anymore.

Sarah Mak (she/her) is a writer from Singapore. Her poetry has been published in Quarterly Literary Review Singapore and Eunoia Review, among others. She is also a member of zer0sleep, a writing collective.

Nic Chan is an independent web developer and artist from Hong Kong. Her passions include
making the internet more accessible for disabled users, advocating for a more open internet,
plein-air painting, and of course, gaming. You can find her on Mastodon at
@NicMakesStuff@indieweb.social.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

LESS THAN THREE STARS Written by Jack Xi 📷 Photo credit: Enqueered 🕹️Preorder “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” Selected regions: differenceengine.sg/comics/free-... Rest of the world: bookshop.org/p/books/free... #writingcommunity #booksky

Less than three stars by Jack Xi
Discounting the poor framerate on NPC walk cycles, which makes
background stair-climbers into jittery zombies, this lack of non-stair options isnʼt an
issue for our non-disabled protagonist. But I feel horror like a scream rise within me: in this city like mine, with its selfies and slang, where are the people who move like me — who limp, or crawl, or wheel?

Jack Xi (they/he) is a queer, disabled Singapore-based writer who enjoys relocating bugs so they don't get stepped on. Poetry and poetry reviews editor at SUSPECT, they’ve appeared in several journals and anthologies both Singaporean and otherwise. Find out more at jackxisg.wordpress.com.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

ALL THE TIMES I WAS DRAGONBORN Written by Nuraliah Nurasid (@nuraliahnorasid) 📷 Photo credit: Diana Rahim 🕹️Preorder “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” Selected regions: differenceengine.sg/comics/free-... Rest of the world: bookshop.org/p/books/free... #writing #videogames

All the times I was Dragonborn by Nuraliah Norasid
Perhaps itʼs because I never saw the Dragonborn as a proxy for me, but as someone who exists “alongside” me. To be alongside is to share space and movement without hierarchy – to accompany rather than command. The Dragonborn is not just a mirror of my desires or a conduit for adventure.

Nuraliah Norasid’s debut novel The Gatekeeper (Epigram Books) won the Epigram Books Fiction Prize 2016, Best Fiction Title at the Singapore Book Awards 2018, and was shortlisted for the Singapore Literature Prize 2018. She holds a PhD in English and Creative Writing from Nanyang Technological University. As an avid gamer from a young age, Nuraliah hopes the experiential nature of games can be used to discuss inequality and inequity, class, and privilege.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

THE LAST BONFIRE Written by Myle Yan Tay @myleyantay.bsky.social and illustrated by Natalie M. E. Tan 🕹️Preorder “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” Selected regions: differenceengine.sg/comics/free-... Rest of the world: bookshop.org/p/books/free... #comics

The Last Bonfire by Myle Yan Tay & Natalie M. E. Tan

Myle Yan Tay is a writer of plays and prose, including "Brown Boys don't tell jokes" staged by checkpoint theatre and catskull published by Ethos books. He co-hosts Comic Sans, a podcast about comics for those who are sans knowledge, produced by Andas Productions.

Natalie M. E. Tan is an illustrator and graphic designer based in Seattle, USA, and Singapore. She was a finalist for Illustrator of the Year (2024) for her work as the creator of children’s sci-fi graphic novel Wen & Giri Save the World (Epigram Books). Her career has seen her through collaborations with clients like Asiapac Books, Ethos Books, and National Gallery Singapore.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

SIDE-SCROLLER Written by Ken Liu @kyliu99.bsky.social 📷 Photo credit: Lisa Tang Liu 🕹️Preorder “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” Selected regions: differenceengine.sg/comics/free-... Rest of the world: bookshop.org/p/books/free... #booksky #games

Side-Scroller by Ken Liu
As a result of the switch, the side-scrolling platformer turns into a third-person action-adventure, and you discover elements of the environment hidden from the side-view: impassable mountains turn out to have tunnels, paths open up between multiple planes that are flattened into one from the side, enemies reveal new weaknesses, and so on.

Ken Liu is an American author of speculative fiction. A winner of the Nebula, Hugo, and World Fantasy awards, he wrote The Dandelion Dynasty, a silkpunk epic fantasy series, as well as the short story collection The Paper Menagerie and Other Stories. His latest book, All that We See or Seem, is a techno-thriller starring an AI-whispering hacker who saves the world.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

You’ve been waiting, and the moment is finally here.“DELAY: A Comics Anthology” is now available worldwide ✨ Get your copy of “DELAY: A Comics Anthology” from bookshop.org, and other major online retailers (worldwide), or differenceengine.sg (selected regions only). #booksky #graphicnovels

DELAY book cover, "Now available worldwide"

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

THE SHORT, SWEET LIFE OF COMMANDER BRIAN Written by Gabriela Lee @sundialgirl.bsky.social 📷 Photo credit: Sandra Dans 🕹️Preorder “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” Selected regions: differenceengine.sg/comics/free-... Rest of the world: bookshop.org/p/books/free... #writingcommunity

The Short, Sweet Life of Commander Brian by Gabriela Lee
WINʼs hum stills. “What did you say?”
You repeat the word to her. It echoes in the small space of your HUD.
“You must never say that again,” she says. WINʼs tone sends a shiver down your spine. You express dismay at her words.
“Iʼm serious, Brian. If they know you know that word, youʼll be killed. Or worse, deleted.”

Gabriela Lee is a teacher and writer of speculative fiction and youth literature. She is a faculty member at the University of the Philippines and earned her PhD in Literature from the University of Pittsburgh. She received a World Fantasy Award in 2025 for her editorial work. She can be found online at sundialgirl.com.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 29/04/2026

NO MAN IS AN ISLAND Written & Illustrated by Ellie Black 🕹️Preorder “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” SG/MY/BN: differenceengine.sg/comics/free-... Rest of the world: bookshop.org/p/books/free... #graphicnovels #comics

Ellie Black is a cartoonist based in Brooklyn, New York. Their work has appeared in The New Yorker, Electric Literature, Nashville Review, and more. Ellie has taught games studies and game design and is the co-creator of the card game Someone Has Died.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

Spanning fiction, creative non-fiction, poetry, comics, and multimedia works from an international array of emerging and established voices, “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” is both a love letter to and a bold exploration of what video games and gaming culture are, and can be.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

Expect references to Animal Crossing, Super Mario, Pokémon, Fortnite, Skyrim, and Snake. But whether you've clocked a hundred hours of playtime or have never picked up a controller before, you're welcome to indulge in this critical analysis and celebration of video game culture!

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

Literature as a game. Gaming as literature. How are writers and artists interacting with video games, gaming, and notions of play? 🕹️ Preorder “Free to Play: A Video Games Anthology” SG/MY/BN: differenceengine.sg/comics/free-... Rest of the world: bookshop.org/p/books/free... #booksky #graphicnovels

Book cover of "Free to play: A Video games anthology". A love letter to video games and gaming culture, preorder now.

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

All of our books are available for Singapore/Malaysia at differenceengine.sg. Also look out for the SG Culture Pass sticker on selected books at our local bookstores!

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

So many books, so little time… Stuck with a little decision paralysis? Let those braincells chill and go with the flow with our mini-map that’ll find a book to totally match your vibe ✨ (slides continue below🔽) #booksky #comics

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 24/03/2026

Sharing with the President our comics and catalogue was NOT in our 2026 bingo card, but we're always down for a nice surprise! 🎁 President Tharman and Mrs Tharman dropped by our office this week, and we are so honored to have had the chance to introduce them to our comics 📚✨ (cont.)

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

All the responses to Shreya Davies and Vanessa Wong’s heart-wrenching yet hopeful comic is a reminder that the hardest journeys are often the least visible, and that we can afford to hold each other a little closer.

To The Last Gram is a beautiful portrayal of an important issue that will resonate with those who have a monstrous relationship with food.

— Abigail on Goodreads

I really love the metaphor of seeing her body as a patchwork quilt that is made up of all parts of her journey.

— amber on Goodreads

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Difference Engine @differenceenginesg.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

Many stitches make a seam 🪡 and every reader is part of this patchwork quilt. 📚"To the Last Gram" by Shreya Davies and Vanessa Wong #booksky #publishing

A wonderful comic about the insidiousness of disordered eating and the difficult journey of recovery in a society where body shaming and diet culture are so often masked as 'healthy'.

— Jade Armstrong, Food School

"Visceral and unflinching."
— Kirkus Reviews
"An interrogation of what “recovery” from mental illness mean, and the ways in which recovery is never linear..."
— Keezy Young, Hello Sunshine

This is not just a story for those who have lived through similar struggles. It is a story that speaks for them.

— Rashini D on Goodreads

This book speaks to the darkest corner of my heart—the part I want to hide forever.

— i on Goodreads

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